Re: What If " King Cod Express Ii " Miss Belmar Princess
 

tautog, thanks for the posts. I thought what you were saying. Hopefully we will get em!

Leif

Re: What If " King Cod Express Ii " Miss Belmar Princess
 

Hopefully I will be coming. I can't get my work schedule for Feb for another week or so. I will be on the Gambler on Fri, hoping to at least get a market to go along with my ling.

Re: What If " King Cod Express Ii " Miss Belmar Princess
 

Over the past few years the codfish have been on the rebound. Tight restrictions put on the species in the New England area have started to pay off and the prolific cod is starting to re-appear in numbers.

Some of these fish have been filtering down to areas not far from Block Island RI and Montauk NY.

The cod fishing has also improved in N.J. as some of these fish have trickled down and taken up residence on the local and off shore wrecks that exist 20-50 miles off our coast. Some cod have also made an appearance on the farms in the spring and are occasionally caught fishing for blackfish and ling. Hopefully the trend will continue and we will able to continue to target this fine fish.

With that being said, I have had a lot of questions regarding cod and cod fishing in different areas, specifically Montauk.

This post will primarily deal with Party boat techniques in that area with respect to the codfish that have been invading that area in Mid January, February and March.

This is typically not wreck fishing. You are typically drifting over "piles" or "pods" of fish that are actively feeding on herring or mackerel. They have the feed bag on and are getting ready to spawn. These fish are not line shy and will aggressively engulf large (7/0-8/0) hooks baited with clams and can be taken on jigs as well.

Sounds easy, right??? It is if you are prepared. You need to be prepared because the "bite" does not last all day long in most cases. Without the proper gear and rigs you may only end up with a few cod, instead of your limit. You may use what you like and these fish can be hooked on almost anything, but to be more efficient and productive I recommend the following.

Rod

I recommend a heavy 8ft 30-60lb cod rod or the like.

Why? This is not light tackle fishing and you are on a Party boat. You will be using 10-20 oz. sinkers.

These fish are generally under 20lbs and most are 5-10lbs. You want to be able to lift these fish into the boat, unhook them and send the rig back down. You need a heaver rod for that and in some cases you will be dealing with double headers.

Reel

I recommend a Penn 4/0 sized reel loaded with 40-50lb mono. line or 65-85lb braid. This reel will match the rod you are using and make life easy for you.

Why? Cranking up two ten pound cod with a twelve once sinker from 100-160ft of water with this type of reel makes it that much easier. Why the heavier braid??? In the cold, it is much easier to untangle 85lb braid, take my word for it.

Rigs

Again for the most part, you will be drifting on pods or piles of cod. When drifting or in a currrent, I recommend a two hook rig with swivels attached to the hooks. (see tangle free cod rig) The rig is approximately 40 inches long and has two 8/0 O'Shaunessy hooks equipped with IN curly tail grubs in pink, white, chartreuse or blue and white. The hooks are looped onto inch droppers and lb test mono is used.

Why? The swivels prevent any twisting of the rig while fishing and cod will twist while being brought to the surface. The less time dealing with "fouled" rigs, the more fishing time. The swivels will also allow a natural presentation of the bait and the curly tail grub will provide enticement.

Note...Bring traditional cod rigs as well. Often the boat will anchor when the bite slows and in those cases a rig without all the bells and whistles may work better. There is also some great ling fishing in that area. Often you will anchor up on a spot and have the opportunity to catch some large red hake so bring some rigs as well.

Jigs

When the action slows I have found jigging to be productive. Bring 10-24oz hammered and Viking jigs tied on 80lb leader with a teaser. I have seen much success with a sliver and blue teaser on the bottom hook of the jig as the flash imitates a mackerel or herring.

Leif

Re: What If " King Cod Express Ii " Miss Belmar Princess
 

http://www.nero.noaa.gov/nero/regs/i...arterParty.pdf

here is the regs. read it. check the abbreviation and what they stand for.
you may may not see it as i do. take note of gulf of maine and georges banks calender day and 15 hours .if you catch between 10- 20 be happy its the most you will see in a life time .either way you will be fine. I have a call into NOAA.
NY has a bag limit of 10. new jersey does not have a bag limit yet.being that we are federally permit we have to go by federal regs.
im not gonna get into a regulation debate. we have enough of that already.
come out catch some cod be happy. dont come out read the posts and enjoy it with us.

see ya soon
capt jimmy

Re: What If " King Cod Express Ii " Miss Belmar Princess
 

Thanks for the CLARIFICATION!

Can't wait!

Leif

Re: What If " King Cod Express Ii " Miss Belmar Princess
 

Ok. Those are the regs that were explained to me. Looks like the 20 interpretation is accurate. Which means you have a chance at more fish, as well as it being less hectic and avoiding traffic tickets in the Hamptons. There were days in that fishery last year where a double limit was more than possibile, even likely, but every year is different.

Re: What If " King Cod Express Ii " Miss Belmar Princess
 

umm and there will be breakfast too right...............

Re: What If " King Cod Express Ii " Miss Belmar Princess
 

And King Cod Cakes too for lunch.

Re: What If " King Cod Express Ii " Miss Belmar Princess
 

OH BOY!!!!!!!:D

Re: What If " King Cod Express Ii " Miss Belmar Princess
 

Refresher cod rig post......

Killer Tangle Free Cod Rig

This rig works great when there is a current an drifting. It does not tangle and it catches Cod.

You can also remove the botom hook and replace it with a smaller hook on a snelled leader for ling.

DISCLAIMER...
CONDITIONS VARY SO NOTHING WORKS PERFECT ALL THE TIME AND I KNOW EVERY COD FISHERMAN HAS THERE FAVORITE RIG.

Materials

7 ft 80-100lb clear Leader
3 230lb Spro swivels
2 8/0 Mustad/Eagle Claw O'Shauhnessy
2 6-8 in Pink Grubs

First open eye of 8/0 hooks and attach swivel, close eye using pliers. The swivels allow the hooks and bait to rotate so the rig will not trist on itself.

Sharpen these hooks!!! I use a dremel to do this because it is fast. Whatever you use make sure the hooks are sharp.

1 Tie a Perfection loop in one end for the sinker
2 Tie a 6in dropper loop 6-8in up from the loop
3 Tie in another Dropper loop 3ft above the first.
4 Attach one Swivel with clinch Knot 6-10 in above last loop
5 Loop hooks on and thread on pink grubs.

Leif